William arthur ottbridge



w. A, OUBRIDGE. RING AND LIKE CASTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-8| IBIB- Patented Dec. 16, 1919.

M S V//////////A//////////// R v u Q k s Rwm no WILLIAM ARTHUR OUIBRIDGE, OF COVENTRY, ENGLAND.

RING- AND LIKE CASTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 16, 1919.

Application filed August 8, 1918. Serial No. 248,987.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM ARTHUR OUBRIDGE, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and residing at Haldon, Park Road, Coventry, in the county of lVarwiek, England, have invented Improvements in or Relating to Ring and like Casting Machines, and of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to centrifugal casting machines of that kind in which metal rings, tubes or the like are cast in axially horizontal cylindrical chill-molds having axially movable radial end walls and the object of this invention is the provision of a machine of this kind adapted to withdraw the casting as soon as it solidifies and then to release 1t so that it may fall away or be easily removed. By this novel means and in this way no more heat is abstracted-from the casting than is necessary and the afterprocess of annealing is consequently better effected than is the case with castmgs allowed to cool in the usual way.

According to this invention a ring or like casting machine comprises a mold adapted for shaping a ring or the like with its axls horizontal combined with mechanically movable means for withdrawing the casting axially from one of the radial walls of the mold and for leavin it in a position from which it may fall or %e easily removed.

In order that my invention may be readily understood preferred embodiments thereof are hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which Figure 1 is a longitudinal central section through a centrifugal mold ring-casting machine.

Fig. 2 is a similar sectional view of part of a modification of the invention adapted for casting long rings or pots.

Referring first to the form of the invention shown in Fig. 1, the peripheral wall a is mounted on a sleeve 6 adapted to be moved axially when the headstock c is slid along its frame d for example by means of the hand wheel d rack c and pinion 05 A radial wall e is carried on the spindle f which slides axially within the sleeve 6 and is provided with a pair of collars g, g for limiting the movement of the spindle relatively to the said sleeve. wall h is rotatable only, relatively to the Another radial.

other mold walls a and c. It is mounted on a hollow journal 2' carried by a bearing 3' and is of sufficiently large diameter to permit the introduction through it of the cruci-. ble pouring spout.

The sleeve I) and journal 71 are retained in alinement and rendered adjustable axially relatively, each to each, bymeans of the slots and bolts or other devices by which they are secured to the frame of the machine.

The transmission of heat from the mold to the bearings is prevented by radiating gills 7c and 70 which dissipates a part of it from the sleeve b and journal 71, and in part by an asbestos ring Z interposed between the mold wall it and the enlarged part n of the journal 41.

In order to limit the axial movement of the spindle f which carries the movable radial wall e,-a stop m is mounted at one end of the frame (1, so as to engage one of the collars g, 9 when the spindle fis moved each way by the peripheral mold-wall a or by the casting.

In order to retain the wall a in frictional contact with the wall it during the casting operation and so to insure the rotation of the latter, a catch 0 on the headstock c is used to engage a pin p on the frame d. This catch may be of any suitable form. As shown it is a bell-crank lever, the handle 9 of which is swung to the left to disengage it, and to the right to cause it to rest on the stud 1* for automatically engaging the pin 17.

Instead of being driven by frictional contact as shown, the drive may be rendered positive by means of lugs, pins or the like projections on the radial wall h and holes or other recesses in the peripheral .wall a adapted to receive them.

The parts of the mold are rotated together by means of the strap-pulley w and quickly stopped by switching off the electric motor driving it and by applying the brake w.

A shield 00 is preferably provided for receiving any. metal which may be thrown from the enlarged part of the journalz' when the latter is rotating, and a micawindow 00 in the said shield allows the pouring and casting operations to be safely observed.

In operation, the parts of the machine- I) and journal and the spindle f being rotated together by means of the pulley w,

the pouring spout of the crucible is introduced within the mold through the hollow journal 2' and the molten metal poured into the annular space provided by the the walls a, e and h where it is received upon the peripheral wall a, the velocity of which it gradually acquires so that it is pressed by the centrifugal force against it, and when suflicient metal has been poured, any excess being driven centrifugally outward along the inclined part of the wall it and'through the peripheral openings of the enlarged part n or cage of the sleeve 2', it is allowed to set. When the metal has solidified, and rotation of the mold and casting arrested by means of the brake w the hand-wheel d is rotated to turn the pinion d so that the sleeve 6 pulls the wall a toward the right, together with the spindle f until the movement of the latter is arrested by the stop m, thus freeing the casting from contact with the wall h. The peripheral wall a continues its movement to the right, the casting being prevented from moving with it by the now axially immovable wall 6, until the said wall a is quite free of the said' casting which falls away. The hand-Wheel d is thenf turned in the opposite direction and the mold parts are returned to the position shown, ready for the casting of another ring.

In the modification shown in Fig. 2 the peripheral wall 21 is lon relatively to the wall a in Fig. 1, the mo d being intended for use in the casting pots from which piston rings may be turned and the wall 21 is flared outward at 22 to provide for the flange used for chucking such pots in a lathe.

When the casting, of which the inner side is indicated by broken lines, has set, the sleeve 23 and spindle 24 arevmoved so as to draw the walls 21 and 25 toward the right until the casting has left the wall 26, the

wall 25 remains relatively stationary while the wall 21 continues its movement toward the right until the casting and mold are quite separated, the operations being similar, in order, to those described above in reference to the mold for casting short rings, shown in Fig. 1, the extent only of the-movement differing in the two cases.

It has been found that when this form of mold is constructed as that shown in Fig. 1, castings cool much more rapidly at the ends than at the middle, particularly at the smaller end. By the construction shown in Fig. 2 more uniform loss of heat takes place from the middle of the casting and consequently more uniform contraction. Heat is conducted away from the middle by the flange 27 and socket 28, while the inner end of the pot is kept warm by the air between the socket and the walls 21 and 25 which is prevented from circulation and so from conduction.

I claim:

1. A ring or like casting machine comprising in combination a mold having a peripheral mold-wall fast on a rotatable axially movable sleeve, means for supporting said sleeve, means for moving said sleeve axially, a radial mold wall fast on a rotatable spindle movable axially within said sleeve, a second rotatable radial moldwall mounted independently of said peripheral wall, said sleeve and said spindle, means for maintaining said peripheral moldwall and said second radial mold-wall in contact, a hollow rotatable journal adapted to admit a means for conducting fluid metal into said mold, and a relatively stationary bearing for carrying said journal, substantially as described.

2. A ring or like casting machine comprising in combination a frame, a mold having a peripheral mold-wall fast on a rotatable axially movable sleeve, an axially movable bearing carrying said sleeve, a rack and pinion gearing for moving said bearing relatively to said frame, a radial mold-wall fast on a rotatable spindle movable axially within said sleeve, a rotatable second radial mold-wall carried independently of said peripheral mold-wall said sleeve and said spindle, a hollow rotatable journal adapted to admit a liquid conductor therethrough to said mold, a relatively stationary bearing for carryingsaid journal and a detachable catch on said movable bearing for engaging a stop on said frame to hold the peripheral and independent second radial walls in contact, substantially as described.

3. A ring or like casting machine comprising in combination, a frame, a mold having a peripheral mold-wall fixed on an extremity of a rotatable sleeve, a radial moldwall movable axially within said peripheral mold-wall and mounted on a spindle movable axially within said sleeve, collars on said spindle adapted to engage a stop on said frame for limiting the movement of said radial mold-wall relatively to said sleeve, a sleeve bearing on said frame forcarrying said sleeve and movable axially relatively. to said sleeve on said frame, a rack and pinion gear and means for turning it whereby said sleeve-bearing may be moved relatively to said frame, a second radial Wall independent of said peripheral wall said sleeve. and said spindle and adaptedto make contact with said peripheral wall for being rotated thereby said second wall being perforated for admitting a conductor for fluid metal to said mold, a hollow journal for carrying said second radial wall, a relatively stationary bearing on said frame for carrying said journal and a catch on said sleeve-bearing adapted to automatically engage a stop on said frame so as to lock the peripheral and second radial walls in contact and for being detached from said stop substantially as described.

4. A ring or like casting machine comprising in combination a frame, a mold havmg a peripheral mold-wall fixed near the center of its periphery to the socket ofa rotatable axially movable sleeve, a radial mold-wall movable axially within the peripheral mold-Wall and mounted on a spindle axially movable within said sleeve, a bearing on said frame for carrying said sleeve, a second radial wall independent of said peripheral wall, said sleeve and said spindle and adapted to make contact with said peripheral wall for being rotated thereby and perforated for admitting a fluid metal conductor to said mold, a hollow journal for carrying said second radial wall, a relatively stationary bearing on said frame for carrying said journal, means for separating said peripheral and second radial mold-walls, and means for temporarily locking said sleeve, means for moving said sleeve axially, a radial mold wall fast on a rotatable spindle movable axially within said sleeve, a second rotatable radial mold-wall mounted independently of said peripheral wall, projections on one of the relatively independent mold-walls adapted to engage corresponding recesses in the other of said relatively independent mold-walls for causing both walls to rotate together, a hollow rotatable journal carrying said second radial mold-wall. and adapted to admit a means for conducting fluid-metal into said mold and a relatively stationary bearing for carrying said journal, substantially as described.

WILLIAM ARTHUR OUBRIDGE. 

